The need for safe calibration

There are industrial environments where calibrations should not only be made accurately and efficiently, but also safely. When safety becomes a top priority issue in calibration, intrinsically safe calibrators are required.

Intrinsic safety (IS) is a protection technique for safe operation of electronic equipment in explosive environments. The idea behind intrinsic safety is to be assured that the available electrical and thermal energy in the system is always low enough that ignition of the hazardous atmosphere cannot occur.

Intrinsically safe calibrators

An intrinsically safe calibrator is designed to be incapable of causing ignition in the surrounding environment with flammable materials, such as gases, mists, vapors or combustible dust. Intrinsically safe calibrators are also often referred to being “Ex calibrators” or “calibrators for Ex Areas”.

Where is intrinsically safe calibration required

Many industries require intrinsically safe calibration equipment. Intrinsically safe calibrators are designed for potentially explosive environments, such as oil refineries, rigs and processing plants, gas pipelines and distribution centres, petrochemical and chemical plants, as well as pharmaceutical plants. Basically, any potentially explosive industrial environment can benefit from using intrinsically safe calibrators.

Benefits of using intrinsically safe calibrators

Safest possible technique. Intrinsically safe calibrators are safe for employees, as they can be safely used in environments where the risk of an explosion exists. In addition, intrinsically safe calibrators are the only technique permitted for Zone 0 environments (explosive gas and air mixture is continuously present or present for a long time).

Performance and functionality. Multifunctional intrinsically safe calibrators provide the functionality and performance of regular industrial calibration devices, but in a safe way. They can be used for calibration of pressure, temperature and electrical signals. A documenting intrinsically safe calibrator, such as the Beamex® MC5-IS, provides additional efficiency improvements with its seamless communication with calibration software. This eliminates the need of manual recording of calibration data and improves the quality and productivity of the entire calibration process.